I just climbed Mission Peak for the first time over the weekend!
The guy standing next to me is my good ole’ mentor and friend.Paul.
At the top we were huffing and puffing. It was crazy. My expectations were way off.
The hike was almost straight up!
Fortunately Paul brought food.
Can you imagine what would have happened if there was no food?
And I say fortunately because even calm guys like Paul and I ...
We get HANGRY.
No doubt there would’ve been violence had Paul not brought a few Builder Bars.
And here’s what’s important:
Paul has lost 20 lbs and kept off 20 lbs over 2 years.
And he is currently running and an IndieGogo campaign to fund a technologically innovative DIY indoor farm.
Paul met this genius engineer. This genius invented a patented-system to easily grow plants. Now they think they this technology may be the key to feeding the entire planet.
Surprisingly this technology appears to only be a simple bucket...
But inside this bucket is new nano-technology which makes plants grow on just a few water droplets a day!
They’ve raised over 10K so far. You gotta check out their intro video.
And so anyways we were at the top of Mission Peak.
And I wanted to share with you Paul’s wisdom:
Bring food with you so you don’t starve.
It works for Paul.
But what does Paul do specifically to meal prep?
Well, for starters you’d have to ask him.
But I have done some research and have seen people in this situation before.
And the most common thing I see is people knowing they should meal prep ...
But not having the time or motivation to do so.
So there are 2 big problems - time and motivation.
Let’s talk about motivation first.
And yeah, I know you already know all the benefits of meal prepping.
This Healthline article lists 5 main benefits: https://www.healthline.com/health/food-nutrition/meal-planning-hacks-tips#5
- Can help save money
- Can ultimately save time
- Can help with weight control, as you decide the ingredients and portions served
- Can contribute to an overall more nutritionally balanced diet
- Can reduce stress as you avoid last minute decisions about what to eat, or rushed preparation
But let’s say you already know the benefits ...
And still aren’t motivated. What then?
Well, the key is to make meal prepping easy and fun.
Do not settle for anything less than easy and fun.
For most people this means ...
#1 Don’t be worried about being perfect
Sometimes people think they need the healthiest meal prep to do it ‘right’
But then main benefit of meal prep is actually not eating out at fast food restaurants and saving money and time.
So don’t worry so much about the nutrition. There’s no need to make it perfect.
#2 Brainstorming and creating a go-to list of foods
This makes it much easier in the hard times when you’re super busy ...
Because you already have a list that you know is easy and fun.
Take for example one guy I was working with.
He had a kid and always was rushed on time.
But once he realized he could eat one of his favorite snacks ...
Peanut butter sandwiches with honey on whole wheat toast - his whole life changed.
First of all, he wasn’t worrying so much about nutrition.
So peanutbutter and all that stuff was fine now.
And now he was saving hours a week NOT eating out, and saving money too. And stress.
#3 Start small.
Don’t worry about getting meals for every single meal of every single day.
Start with the meal you skip the most frequently. For most people it’s either breakfast or lunch.
Start by prepping just 2-3 days of food for breakfast or lunch.
Don’t worry about being perfect. This was a piece of advice from this Harvard article on meal prepping. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/2017/03/20/meal-prep-planning/
#4 Do all your meal prep at once
People always say they don’t have enough time for meal prep ...
But if done right meal prep save hours of time each week!
The key is to do all your meal prep at once.
Go to the store, prepare the meals, and then they are ready to go!
#5 And last tip - measure how much time and stress you waste when you don’t have meal prep ready
This is a big surprise for a lot of people.
They say they don’t have time to meal prep.
But then they realize they are wasting nearly 5-10 hours a week searching out a restaurant to go to, waiting in line, ordering, eating, waiting for the bill, driving there.
And all that stress too.
And all that escapism too.
These things are not going to help you lose weight.
So, if you are resistant to meal prepping, don’t even worry about it.
But do get clear about the cost of NOT meal prepping. The time, stress and energy involved in the alternative to meal prep.
And then you make the decision.
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